Living
Unexpected Things Made Out of Paper
Slide Nr 1We all know paper is a wonderful, versatile material. It’s cheap, readily available, multipurpose and can be turned into almost anything from kindergarten crafts to intricate origami and delicate paper flowers. And yet, these houses, clothes, bikes, bridges and other unexpected things made out of paper took us by surprise. [Photo: Steve Messam]
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Unexpected Things Made Out of Paper.
Slide Nr 2There’s really nothing you can’t make from paper. Case in point: Pritzker Prize-winning Tokyo-based Shigeru Ban Architects, who specialise in cardboard architecture. They’ve built everything from Expo pavilions and temporary domes to travelling exhibition spaces out of the light, low-cost, recyclable material. Their techniques can also provide quick disaster relief after an earthquake, by providing housing, rebuilding schools or even, in the case of Christchurch, New Zealand, an entire cardboard cathedral. [Cardboard Cathedral, Christchurch, New Zealand. Photo: Steven Goodenough]
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Unexpected Things Made Out of Paper.
Slide Nr 3Woojai Lee also had building in mind when he came up with the idea of Paper Bricks. So far, the sturdy, stackable bricks have only been used to construct small pieces of furniture, but in the future, the bricks may become available as a building material, for example as construction blocks for room dividers or DIY furniture – maybe even for entire houses? As a recent graduate of Design Academy Eindhoven, the Korean-New Zealander designer is only just getting started.
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Unexpected Things Made Out of Paper.
Slide Nr 4What better way to furnish a cardboard house than with cardboard interiors? Australian furniture startup Karton Group provide the sturdy, no-nonsense option, particularly notable for its practical storage solutions. Danish design company Moooi, on the other hand, offer a more whimsical alternative. The paper collection by design duo Studio Job features somewhat baroque items like a chandelier, desk and dining table, both in white and colourful patchwork versions. [Bed: Karton Group; Desk: Studio Job; Chest of Drawers: Karton Group]
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Unexpected Things Made Out of Paper.
Slide Nr 5Brighten up that paper home with a vase that isn’t just eco-friendly, but also socially sustainable. The Paper Vase by Tiny Miracles isn’t technically a vase, but rather a vase cover. The range of colourful sheaths was designed to be a decorative disguise for any old glass or jam jar holding flowers. They are inexpensive, versatile and take up little to no space when folded away. Best of all, they’re manufactured in a fair trade workshop in Mumbai, India, offering employment opportunities for local women.
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Unexpected Things Made Out of Paper.
Slide Nr 6Shredded banknotes have long been popular with designers and artists, resulting in projects like the Irish “Billion Euro House” or Thousand Dollar paperweights. London design studio Variant came up with a more thoughtful use for recycled pounds. Their Money Bowls are made from the equivalent of 1,000 or 3,000 pounds, depending on size. The bottom is purposely unstable, allowing the owner to rotate a money bowl like a spinning top, “symbolising the change and rotation of the cash rate.”
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Living
Unexpected Things Made Out of Paper.
Slide Nr 7At first glance, the bi-color-washi lamp by Japanese design studio Nendo may not seem any more remarkable than scores of other paper lampshades (here’s looking at you, Ikea Regolit). Look a little closer, though, and you’ll realise that the lamp is remarkable not just because it’s made from paper, but by employing a specialised Japanese paper technique. The three-dimensional washi creates seamless forms and the bi-coloured effect that gives these lamps their warm glow. [Photos: Akihiro Yoshida]
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Living
Unexpected Things Made Out of Paper.
Slide Nr 8Cardboard bikes have been hailed as the future of affordable cycling for years. Yet we haven’t seen any results beyond impressive prototypes. Designer Izhar Gafni’s fully functional and stylish prototype created waves five years ago, but his Indiegogo campaign was scrapped when crowdfunding failed to raise enough to get production off the ground. However, his company Cardboard Tech recently announced that they were close to releasing a kid’s cardboard bike and are still working on an adult model.
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Unexpected Things Made Out of Paper.
Slide Nr 9The concept behind the A.S.A.P. (Paper Cloth) research project seems to be “if you can’t beat wasteful fast fashion consumers, join them.“ Instead of repeating the “buy less, choose well, make it last” mantra of sustainability warriors, they’re looking for a solution that at least reduces the impact of fast fashion. If people must have new clothes that are discarded after a few wears, they might as well be made from discard-able materials, such as paper. The challenge is developing a paper cloth that looks and feels like a woven fabric, but is easier to produce, and less wasteful when binned or recycled.
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Living
Unexpected Things Made Out of Paper.
Slide Nr 10A more fanciful and not at all sustainable approach is taken by designers who choose to create elaborate couture creations out of paper. When using non-recycled paper that hasn’t been specially treated, these items don’t contribute to protection of resources, nor are they suitable for actual wear. They do, however, enable creative expression, especially for young designers on a budget. The Paper Fashion Show in Denver, Colorado, showcases the best of paper design by local talent, but you’ll see other examples of paper fashion in museums, shop windows and sales displays all over the world.
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Living
Unexpected Things Made Out of Paper.
Slide Nr 11The remarkable thing about British artist Steve Messam’s paper bridge is not so much what he did with the paper, as what he didn’t do. His temporary bridge was built in the Lake District in 2015 out of nothing but a stack of custom-made paper. The artist used no glue, bolts or other fixings, but relied on the same principles of structural engineering as the drystone walls prevalent in this area. The load-bearing ability of the construction was illustrated by walkers, dogs and sheep traversing the bridge. [Photo: Steve Messam]
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Unexpected Things Made Out of Paper.
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